Chalabigate
"Weapons of Mass Deception"
2004-10-13
CIA analyst to speak on war policy
By Kayur Patel
Collegian Staff Writer
Students will get an inside look at CIA war intelligence and policy, at 7 tonight when retired CIA analyst Ray McGovern brings "Intelligence and War: Examples Past and Present" to 112 Chambers Building.
"The main message is to explain the role of intelligence in policy making," McGovern said. "When you've worked 27 years at it, you know how it works."
McGovern helped found Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity (VIPS), a group of 45 retired intelligence officers that want to spread the message about skewed intelligence used to wage war.
If You Go:What: "Intelligence and War: Examples Past and Present"When: 7 tonightWhere: 112 Chambers Building
"We consider ourselves intelligence officers even though we are retired," he said. "We are non-partisan."
McGovern said he would be criticizing both Democratic and Republican leadership, focusing on President George W. Bush's administration and former President Jimmy Carter's administration.
"Most of the people [in VIPS] voted for, worked for and contributed to George Bush's campaign, but we were so scandalized about what happened," he said.
"I'm just offering a view you'll never get on Fox News," McGovern added.
Penn State graduate Pushker Kharecha coordinated McGovern's speech at the university.
The talk is sponsored by the Department of Communication Arts and Sciences, the Political Science Association and the State College Peace Center.
"This is an objective, fact-based analysis of presidential administrations," Kharecha said. "War is costly and far more importantly, it costs human lives."
Caryl Byrne, State College Peace Center member, said McGovern would educate people about war.
"To prevent future wars, it's important to understand the mechanisms that started past wars," Byrne said.
McGovern said he and other intelligence professionals thought something was wrong before the war in Iraq started in March 2003.
"Condoleezza Rice said five weeks before 9/11 that Iraq had no weapons of mass destruction and it wasn't a threat to neighbors," McGovern said.
"After 9/11, we were told that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction. We smelled a rat," he added.
McGovern said VIPS sent out 11 memorandums to Bush about the misuse of intelligence, including three before the war in Iraq began.
Recently, McGovern wrote an opinion piece in the Miami Herald discussing how a draft is inevitable if the administration continues on the course it has set in Iraq.
Another member of VIPS, David MacMichael, will speak at 7 p.m. Tuesday in 119 Osmond Lab.
He will be talking about the consequences of foreign intervention by the United States.
http://www.collegian.psu.edu/archive/2004/10/10-13-04tdc/10-13-04dnews-03.asp
This site may contain copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.
Collegian Staff Writer
Students will get an inside look at CIA war intelligence and policy, at 7 tonight when retired CIA analyst Ray McGovern brings "Intelligence and War: Examples Past and Present" to 112 Chambers Building.
"The main message is to explain the role of intelligence in policy making," McGovern said. "When you've worked 27 years at it, you know how it works."
McGovern helped found Veteran Intelligence Professionals for Sanity (VIPS), a group of 45 retired intelligence officers that want to spread the message about skewed intelligence used to wage war.
If You Go:What: "Intelligence and War: Examples Past and Present"When: 7 tonightWhere: 112 Chambers Building
"We consider ourselves intelligence officers even though we are retired," he said. "We are non-partisan."
McGovern said he would be criticizing both Democratic and Republican leadership, focusing on President George W. Bush's administration and former President Jimmy Carter's administration.
"Most of the people [in VIPS] voted for, worked for and contributed to George Bush's campaign, but we were so scandalized about what happened," he said.
"I'm just offering a view you'll never get on Fox News," McGovern added.
Penn State graduate Pushker Kharecha coordinated McGovern's speech at the university.
The talk is sponsored by the Department of Communication Arts and Sciences, the Political Science Association and the State College Peace Center.
"This is an objective, fact-based analysis of presidential administrations," Kharecha said. "War is costly and far more importantly, it costs human lives."
Caryl Byrne, State College Peace Center member, said McGovern would educate people about war.
"To prevent future wars, it's important to understand the mechanisms that started past wars," Byrne said.
McGovern said he and other intelligence professionals thought something was wrong before the war in Iraq started in March 2003.
"Condoleezza Rice said five weeks before 9/11 that Iraq had no weapons of mass destruction and it wasn't a threat to neighbors," McGovern said.
"After 9/11, we were told that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction. We smelled a rat," he added.
McGovern said VIPS sent out 11 memorandums to Bush about the misuse of intelligence, including three before the war in Iraq began.
Recently, McGovern wrote an opinion piece in the Miami Herald discussing how a draft is inevitable if the administration continues on the course it has set in Iraq.
Another member of VIPS, David MacMichael, will speak at 7 p.m. Tuesday in 119 Osmond Lab.
He will be talking about the consequences of foreign intervention by the United States.
http://www.collegian.psu.edu/archive/2004/10/10-13-04tdc/10-13-04dnews-03.asp
This site may contain copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.
Milton Frihetsson, 13:54
